Soft and tender, cakey, spiced pumpkin cookies are topped with a sweet vanilla icing and rich chocolate icing and finished with optional pecans for crunch. Such a tempting cookie you'll want to make again and again every fall season!
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
In medium mixing bowl whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and pumpkin pie spice. Set aside.
In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment cream together butter and brown sugar until well combined.
Mix in egg then blend in pumpkin and vanilla.
Add flour mixture and mix just until combined.
Scoop dough out 2 Tbsp at a time (a heaped #40 cookie dough scoop works well) and drop onto prepared baking sheets, spacing cookies 2-inches apart.
Bake one sheet at a time in preheated oven 12 - 15 minutes (they should look puffy and set). Let cool on baking sheet several minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
For the icing**: In a medium mixing bowl whisk together powdered sugar, 3 Tbsp half and half, butter and vanilla until well blended. Thin with more half and half as needed.
If you would like chocolate icing pour half of the icing into a second bowl, add cocoa powder and stir, thin with more half and half to a slightly runny consistency.
Spoon and spread icing over cooled cookies, if using pecans immediately add after spreading glaze over each cookie before the icing starts to set. If desired very lightly dust tops with more pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon.
Let rest at room temperature to allow icing to set. Store cookies in an airtight container.
Notes
*To make your own homemade pumpkin pie spice use these spices (all ground): 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, 1/2 tsp ginger, 1/4 tsp cloves, and 1/4 tsp allspice.
**Note that the icing will wrinkle after the cookies have rested a day. I recommend icing the day you plan on serving them.